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In an age of telehealth appointments and full digital inboxes, an old-school marketing tactic is making a surprising impact in the healthcare marketing industry: direct mail. 

According to recent findings from Lob’s 2025 State of Direct Mail: Consumer Insight Report, healthcare has emerged as one of the highest performing sectors in the direct mail space. This stems from the patient’s desire for personalized care and recommendations. 

“People are overly inundated by digital channels, and I think people are looking for a bit more real world connection,” said Ryan Ferrier, CEO of Lob, an automated direct mail marketing platform. 

The data showed that 76% of consumers read direct mail from a healthcare provider compared to an email open rate of 20% to 25%. These findings can have major implications on how healthcare providers communicate with patients. 

Ferrier explained that one of Lob’s partners, Mabel, sends mail on behalf of doctors to Medicaid patients and has seen a six- to 10-time increase in responses when compared to emails for patient appointment scheduling and follow-up care. 

Direct mail has the advantage of going directly to a patient’s doorstep, often from a trusted source such as their doctor. 

Ferrier said that mail is one of the better direct-to-patient strategies, saying, “That’s Mabel’s whole business model — we’re going to send mail on behalf of the person who the patients trust the most, their doctors.” 

Mail that looks “official,” such as a letter in an envelope, tends to outperform other forms of mail. Trifold postcards were also found to have high engagement rates.

Large catalogues were rated the least effective. Ferrier said that large booklets can feel more like e-commerce and can overwhelm patients with information. 

A surprising finding from the report was that younger generations are increasingly receptive to physical mail.

“People are craving real-world connection, especially when it’s personalized,” Ferrier said. 

Lob’s technology can personalize mail using CRM and EHR data to show relevant services, nearby locations, and personalized maps and directions to offices. 

In the digital age, mail wouldn’t be a successful standalone tool, which is why companies are integrating it into their broader omnichannel marketing strategies. 

Lob’s platform enables healthcare organizations to trigger mail based on a user’s online interactions, and vice versa. For example, a patient might receive a text message right before a piece of mail arrives.

With increasing concerns over data privacy and increased digital advertising regulations, mail can be a more compliant marketing tool. 

Yet while the mailbox is less cluttered than a digital inbox, costs are a consideration for marketers. 

Direct mail costs more than email marketing on account of postage — a first class letter postage costs $0.78 and a small postcard costs $0.61 to send first class — in addition to mailing lists, graphic design and copywriting. 

Still, Lob argues that its offering is a worthwhile investment for marketers, especially those in healthcare.

“Rather than look at the cost of a digital placement or mail piece, we think about ROI and how digital and physical channels play together.” said David Pickel, Lob CFO. “Our State of Direct Mail report found that 79% of executives rank direct mail as their top-performing channel. Ninety percent of marketing executives also told us direct mail enhances engagement and conversions across email, social media and digital ads.”